Northern Ireland Tour

BBC Correspondent Seamus Kelters traces the steps that led to the historic Good Friday Agreement. What now as the ripples of Brexit can also be felt from across the Irish Sea?

Dates: 7 – 14 July 2018Cost: £3400.00Single Supplement: £450.00

Most meals and all accommodation are included in the price. Flights are not included and need to be arranged with your own travel agent. We will advise you as to which flights best fit the itinerary nearer to the tour.

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Tour Itinerary

BBC Correspondent Seamus Kelters traces the steps that led to the historic Good Friday Agreement. What now for Northern Ireland as the ripples of Brexit can also be felt from across the Irish Sea?

Northern Ireland has experienced a period of significant stability, almost two decades on from the end of “the troubles”. Once irreconcilable foes are all represented at Stormont, the region’s parliament, and the chance of a return to violence is remote. But significant differences between the province’s two main communities remain.

Our tour traces the steps that led to the historic Good Friday Agreement; from secretive talks between church leaders and paramilitaries, through to the signing of the agreement in 1998 that paved the way to power sharing.

At meetings with politicians, community leaders, former paramilitaries and ordinary people we ask what’s next for Northern Ireland? The UK’s uncertain political future will also have an impact. The province becomes the only part of the UK to share a land border with the EU after Brexit, And the Conservative coalition with the DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) negotiated after the UK’s June 2017 election could strain on the delicate balance of power.

The tour is led by Seamus Kelters, a BBC journalist with decades of experience.

Day 1: Derry/Londonderry

Day 2: Stroke City

Derry/Londonderry (take your pick depending on your allegiance) as the city is called by locals is as good a place as any for an introduction to “The Troubles.” We get a guided tour of the city walls and Apprentice Boys Hall and the Bogside. This where some of the earliest clashes of the troubles took place, including the infamous shooting by the British Parachute Regiment of demonstrators on Bloody Sunday. We’ll also get a briefing on early contacts between nationalist and loyalist groups. Talk with community activists from the Catholic Bogside, and Protestant Waterside.Overnight Derry/Londonderry

Day 3: Causeway and Belfast

We head east and for Belfast via the Giant’s Causeway. Lunch at Londonderry Arms Hotel, Carnlough. Drive to Belfast. We get an introduction to the geography of the city and presentation on pattern of the Troubles in Belfast and their timeline. Dinner with guests.Overnight Belfast

Day 4: Belfast Tour & The Troubles Legacy

Seamus Kelters leads a tour of the city, chronologically – east Belfast where the city’s prosperity has its foundation – including Parliament Buildings at Stormont – to west where the Troubles spilt on to the streets. Victims of the violence talk about the legacy of the conflict and their lives now. A former senior officer talks about the difficulty of policing in a divided society, the issues faced by the RUC and why policing was overhauled as part of the Good Friday Agreement. Night out in an historic Belfast pub.Overnight Belfast

Day 5: The Settlement and Challenge from Brexit

At Stormont we review the power-sharing agreement that apparently made the best of friends out of two men who were once the worst of enemies – Martin McGuiness of Sinn Fein and Ian Paisley – both now deceased. We’ll also review the challenges faced by the UK’s decisions to leave the European Union. Nowhere does the issue pose more problems than in Northern Ireland – both in practical and constitutional terms.

Day 6: Prisoners, Parades and Continued Divisions

How the prisons became a battleground and sparked the political rise of Sinn Fein. Tour of Crumlin Road Prison close to Belfast city centre. Now closed to inmates, the Victorian-built jail served as a remand prison for much of the Troubles. Meet the prisoners – two men from very different backgrounds describe their personal experiences, the problems that now confront them and their hopes for the future. A representative from one of the may voluntary groups working directly in communities speaks about the difficulty they face on the ground in a divided society. July is part of the parades seasons. Discussion with a BBC journalist on the difficulties that have been posed and continue to be posed by the parading issue.Overnight Belfast

Day 7: Out of Belfast

We meet with some key politicians and journalists to address key questions from the week. And weather permitting we’ll get out of Belfast to Carlingford Lough, a local beauty spot – where we look back over the week over beer and picnic.Overnight Belfast

Day 8: Tour ends

Breakfast and farewells.

If you would like to book a tour please click here to fill in our booking form. Or call us on 0843 289 2349 or email us at [email protected] to find out more.

How to make your Northern Ireland Tour booking

To confirm your booking you need to send a non-refundable deposit of 15% of the total holiday cost or £250 per person (whichever is the greater) made payable to Political Tours Limited.

If you are booking less than 8 weeks prior to departure the full cost of the tour is payable.

If you would like to contact Political Tours’ Director, Nicholas Wood, he can be reached by email at [email protected] or by mobile phone on +44 7855 266 151.

What is included in the Northern Ireland Tour?

The price includes accommodation in 3-4 star hotels in Derry and Belfast as well as all meals during the visit. All the accommodation includes private bathrooms.

Please be aware that Political Tours is a land only tour operator. Our clients travel from many countries and the costs of flights to and from the destination are not included in the price.

How to Reach Northern Ireland?

There are regular daily flights between Belfast International Airport and most British airports, including London (Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted) Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester as well several major international airports including Paris, Rome (Fiumicino), New York (Newark) and Geneva.

Climate & Clothing Suggestions

Northern Ireland has a temperate climate. In June the weather reaches 16-18 degrees on average. While the days are long, there is a good risk of rain. A waterproof is advisable.

Passports, Visa & Health

All clients are personally responsible for ensuring that they have a valid passport, relevant visa's and conform to the health regulations required by the country's that will be visited during the tour.

No visas are required for citizens of the European Economic Area visiting Northern Ireland. UK visa regulation apply for others including citizens from the United States.

Advice on health requirements may be obtained from your GP, or alternatively from the Department of Health leaflet Advice on Health for Travellers, which may be obtained from us, or the Dept of Health in the UK.

Personal Safety

Northern Ireland’s reputation for violence has often been exaggerated, particularly in recent years as the Troubles have receded. According to a recent study by the United Nations International Crime Victimisation Survey (ICVS) shows it has one of the lowest crime rates in the industrialised and developed world, only behind Japan. Tourists usually receive a warm welcome and instances of crime involving visitors are relatively scarce. In Belfast, for example, you should exercise the same precautions as would be sensible in any other city.

Sectarian tensions can spill on to the streets and a sporadic dissident republican campaign continues. While street unrest, shootings and bombings still occur they are increasingly uncommon.

Travel Insurance

Appropriate and adequate travel insurance is essential and is a condition of travelling with us. Your policy must include comprehensive medical cover i.e. the costs of evacuation and repatriation from the remote destinations included in your tour in the event of illness or accident in addition to other medical requirements.

Please provide us with confirmation of the name of your insurance company, the policy number and the insurers’ emergency contact telephone number for use in a medical emergency no later than 8 weeks prior to the tour departure. If you fail to do so, we are entitled to cancel your booking and apply the cancellation charges shown below.

Hazards Inherent in Our Tours

It is in the nature of the itineraries we offer to most of our destinations outside of the UK that the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office may have issued advice against all travel or all but essential travel in relation to the country or parts of the country we are intending to visit prior to confirmation of your booking. Where the FCO issues such advice, we may as a result cancel your tour or make changes so as to avoid the area concerned (see clauses 10 and 12 of our Terms and Booking Conditions). Alternatively, we may ask you to sign a form confirming you wish to proceed with the tour notwithstanding the FCO advice.

Our Cancellation Charges

If you feel you need to cancel a tour before departure we reserve the right to make the following charges.

Up to 56 days Deposit

55 to 28 days 50%

27 to 15 days 75%

14 days or less 100%

On receipt of your booking form and deposit we will confirm your booking in writing, then approximately 8 weeks before departure we shall send you further information relevant to your tour together with a final invoice.

Please pay the invoice within 10 days of the invoice date otherwise we reserve the right to treat the booking as cancelled and apply the cancellation conditions as set out below. Your travel documents are dispatched about 7/10 days before the tour departs.

Booking Terms & Conditions

Full details of our terms and conditions can be viewed by clicking this link.